ATHLETES OF THE WEEK

Boys

Manuel White

SCHOOL: Valencia

YEAR: Senior

SPORT: Football

SEASON AT A GLANCE: With 2,444 yards rushing and 37 touchdowns, UCLA-bound White is having his best season. He is averaging 8.5 yards a carry, owns every rushing record at Valencia and is only the third player in region history to rush for 6,000 career yards.

WEEK AT A GLANCE: White rushed for a school-record 305 yards and five touchdowns in 17 carries in a 55-21 victory over Saugus in a Southern Section Division III semifinal. The 6-foot-3, 220-pounder became the region’s all-time leading rusher with 6,686 yards, surpassing the 6,615 mark set by Buena’s George Keiaho in 1990-93. White ranks fourth on the state’s all-time list.

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Girls

Anita Siraki

SCHOOL: Hoover

YEAR: Junior

SPORT: Cross-country

SEASON AT A GLANCE: Siraki has established herself as one of the top runners in the Western region of the nation by winning nine of 11 races. Her biggest victories came in the Division I races of the Southern Section championships on Nov. 20 and in the state meet on Nov. 27.

WEEK AT A GLANCE: Siraki placed seventh in the West region championships at Mt. San Antonio College on Saturday to become the first Hoover girl to advance to the national championships. She finished third among Californians and her time of 18:23 over the 5,000-meter course was 36 seconds faster than her 15th-place effort last year.